Hypersomniac moving soon to nights! Have I messed up?

Nurses General Nursing

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Specializes in Med/Surg; Psych; Tele.

I currently work days (7A-7P) and I will be moving to nights, and on a different unit, in a couple of weeks. I have always wanted to try working nights since I have always been a night owl, but I am getting more nervous about this new committment with each passing day! While it is true that getting to work at 7A is a terrible thing, the thought of getting home around 8:00-8:30A is kinda tripping me out.

Here's my biggest problem, kinda embarrassing, but here goes: I have been a sleepy person for seriously like the last 25 years. I have often wondered if I have CFS. And no, it's not just laziness. I remember this problem most poignantly when I was in the 7th grade. Looking back, I know I was quite depressed too, but I honestly never have seemed to recover. I fell asleep in just about all of my classes, despite constantly rocking my legs, deep breathing, etc., really making a concerted effort to stay awake. This went on all through college. Anytime I have come back home from anywhere (high school, college, or even later from work), I would immediately have to lay down and nap. Often times for hours. Back to the 7th grade issue...I remember very clearly being barely able to lift one foot in front of the other to walk from the school bus to my home. It felt as if my body weighed 500+ lbs (but I weighed about 100). It was hard to breathe even sometimes - took too much effort. Fast forward to my first degree, age 20 or so, living on a lively college campus...."NurseCherlove, there's a great party tonight. You're gonna come tonight, right?". "Yeah, but I'll probably be late. (I had to have a lengthy nap). This has been a humiliating disability for most of my life!!!!! I have no other health problems! I am of average weight. My depression is medicated/managed well.

Fast forward to now....I have been taking Provigil for the last few months to help me basically be able to make it through my work days. However, it really does not help that much. Adderall worked much better and offered me the best quality of life thus far. However, I have even managed to take an Adderall while laying down for a nap in the hopes that I would wake up shortly, bursting with energy, and still managed to sleep for a few hours!

So all of the above verbosity was simply to demonstrate that I do indeed have a problem being some kind of hypersomniac. My life mostly centers around work and sleep. And I work dayshift!!! So have I made a huge mistake by accepting a nightshift position??? I'm afraid that I will now have to sleep even more, and will then have even less time for doing other things, like, oh, having a life!!

Last thing, and I'll shut up...Ironically, I have started waking up a little earlier on my days off now (recent change in med regime) and not sleeping 20+ hours at a time. And now I'll be moving to nights.

If you have read all of this, God bless you. Sorry for the long post. I just want to have more of a life and this has been a disabling factor for most of my life (I'm 35). Any advice on the best way to have at least a pseudo-normal life (not that I really have that now) while working FT nights would be much appreciated!!

Thanx! ;)

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Specializes in SICU.

Why did you take a nightshift job when you have sleeping issues with a normal schedule?

Night shift is VERY hard on the body. I worked nights for years and it's my favorite shift, but I had to switch to days because I was so exhausted all the time. I could never do nights again.

That being said, you need to make sure that the sleep you get in between shifts is quality sleep - no interruptions, no phone calls, no one waking you up for ridiculous reasons, keep the light out of your room, stuff like that - and if you have worsening symptoms, go back to days! I could NOT do nights now... no way!

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Specializes in Med/Surg, Psych..

I also worked night shift. I found it very difficult to stay awake around 3 am to 4 am. I also noticed when you work at night you tend to gain lots of weight. I was not able to sleep during the day. I had tinted glass put on my bedroom windows, then I made curtains from heavy thick black fabric, I also had my table fan on high speed I still could not sleep, I would hear my neighbours children playing, or my neighbour mowing the lawn.

I have a friend who works night shift, she sleeps in her walk-in-closet.

I hope you dont live too far from your work, you may fall asleep while you are driving....

Hope everything goes well with you....good luck:)

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Hi,

I really think at the very least, have your doctor order a pulse ox for you to wear to bed one night. This sounds like a classic case of sleep apnea (which I have).

I am not a nurse (yet) bur you sound JUST like me throughout these many years and I am 48.

Just do this...get the O2 tested....for starters....it will be a good inicator if you have sleep apnea or not.

Then let me know how it goes.

Please??????? Do it this coming week!

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Well you could try it for a while and see how it goes. Educate yourself about the symptoms of sleep deprivation and get out if you see your behavior or personality changing. My brother worked for 15 years as LPN rotating days and evenings with no problems. He then changed to another position where he rotated days and nights. After two years he started to feel as if he was losing his mind. His supervisors were not sympathetic about him needing to change back to his old job so he quit. I knew exactly what was happening to him and how he felt because I once quit a job where I had to swing days and nights for exactly the same reason. So watch out but who knows it might work for you.

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This might not be such a good move for you, at least until you can get a handle on this problem. Nights are wicked. I've always worked nights, and it has really messed me up. I tried days, and felt better but after so many years of nights I was unable to go to sleep at a decent hour, instead staying awake until 1 or 2 or even 3 am, only to have to get up at 5 to get ready for work. Although I wasn't getting 'good' sleep while working nights, I was getting NO sleep working days. I was told to tough it out and it would improve, but after about 6 months or so, I had to return to nights.

I like the atmosphere and teamwork at nights that you don't necessarily see as much on days. I also like that the 'suits' are not around to bug the crap outta me. But please know, it has taken its toll physically. The body just wasn't meant for this; it is unnatural, no matter how much of a night owl you may be.

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Well you could try it for a while and see how it goes. Educate yourself about the symptoms of sleep deprivation and get out if you see your behavior or personality changing. My brother worked for 15 years as LPN rotating days and evenings with no problems. He then changed to another position where he rotated days and nights. After two years he started to feel as if he was losing his mind. His supervisors were not sympathetic about him needing to change back to his old job so he quit. I knew exactly what was happening to him and how he felt because I once quit a job where I had to swing days and nights for exactly the same reason. So watch out but who knows it might work for you.
Rotating shifts should be outlawed, IMO. As hard as nights might be, rotating will make you sick.
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I have felt the same way as you, only maybe to a lesser degree, most of my life and I believe I have sleep apnea. I plan on someday checking on this. My brother uses CPAP at night and I think I need it too. However, I've worked night shift most of my two major careers and really prefer night shift for the reasons that Emmanuel pointed out. Try it and see if you can adapt. Give yourself enough time to adjust. Also look up all the hints for night shifters and put them into practice. I too would urge you to get checked out for sleep apnea. Good luck. Hope you adapt and get to like night shift. It's an entirely different world.

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Specializes in Med/Surg; Psych; Tele.
Hi,

I really think at the very least, have your doctor order a pulse ox for you to wear to bed one night. This sounds like a classic case of sleep apnea (which I have).

I am not a nurse (yet) bur you sound JUST like me throughout these many years and I am 48.

Just do this...get the O2 tested....for starters....it will be a good inicator if you have sleep apnea or not.

Then let me know how it goes.

Please??????? Do it this coming week!

Well, here's the thing....I had a sleep study just within this past year to R/O sleep apnea and also narcolepsy. Sleep apnea was ruled out. I mostly failed the test so narcolepsy pretty much ruled out too. But thanx for the suggestion.

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Specializes in Med/Surg; Psych; Tele.
I was unable to go to sleep at a decent hour, instead staying awake until 1 or 2 or even 3 am, only to have to get up at 5 to get ready for work.

That's pretty much me now. I can never get to sleep, even if I am exhausted, before MN. It's been getting a little better lately - it used to pretty much constantly be around 1:00. Now that might sound confusing when considering my original post, but basically in a nutshell, if I have any sustained energy, it is usually between 10P-2-3A.

I like the atmosphere and teamwork at nights that you don't necessarily see as much on days. I also like that the 'suits' are not around to bug the crap outta me.

Now THAT I will be looking forward to!!!!! And just less chaos in general.

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i switched to nocs, around a month ago.

so maybe, it's too early to tell?

like emmanuel, i've always been a noc owl, going to bed at 1-3am, then getting up at 5:30 to go to work.

working nocs, i feel like my world has been turned upside down.

so far, it's been averaging 2 days w/o sleep and sleep on the 3rd day.

i'm in a fog and am not half as productive as i used to be.

i personally would not recommend it.

best of everything.

leslie

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Specializes in Med/Surg; Psych; Tele.
i switched to nocs, around a month ago.

so maybe, it's too early to tell?

like emmanuel, i've always been a noc owl, going to bed at 1-3am, then getting up at 5:30 to go to work.

working nocs, i feel like my world has been turned upside down.

so far, it's been averaging 2 days w/o sleep and sleep on the 3rd day.

i'm in a fog and am not half as productive as i used to be.

i personally would not recommend it.

best of everything.

leslie

Ok, you're scaring me a little. I just keep telling myself, "It's only for 6 months or so. You can handle anything for 6 months."

What I'm hoping for is for a position on this new unit to open up for something like weekend option dayshift. I figure w/ 6 months of experience in this new area, they should let me go to weekend option.

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